Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-07-14
THE DEM0CRAIIC NORTHWEST THURSDAY. JULY a. 1881

Esquimaur, a continued line Of folk-lor,
from the Samoyede of Russia and Finn o
Laplander to the red Indians Of America
Mr.. Leland conjectures that the lost frag
ments OF the Eddas may possibly exist in thl
Indian sagas. The study OF the connection
between the Indian myths and those Of the
Turanian races of Northern Europe has hith.
erto been almost an impossibility owing tc
our Ignorance OF these traditions, but IL II
almost idle 70 speculate on the Outcome al
this early stage, except to say that II proves
that there il 4 line Of descent or affinity be-
tween the Esquimau and other tribes around
the North Pole and our modern Indians.
It has until recently been held that the
Mound-builders were Of the same family as
the red Indians Of modern days; but, il i
held by Prof. Wihchell, the eminent geolo-
gist, of Michigan, that America was peopled
in two ways: First. the Mound builders who
have small, round skulls, like the Mongolian
and Esquimau races, came from Asia, proba-
bly, over Behring's strait or across the Aleu-
tian Islands. The red Indians of modern
times, on the contrary, have long skulls and
are OF warlike disposition: they are hence
nearer allied, says Prof. Winchell, to the
Polynesian tribes of the Pacific ocean. He
advances the theory of polynesian origin of
our red men and stoutly maintains it. Let us
examine the theory more fully. The distance
across Behring's strait is less than forty-five
miles in latitude 65 north, or less than the
width of one Of the great inland lakes. In
latitude 30 north, or the Aleutian Islands
now belonging to the United States, the
farthest one of which lies as far west as San
Francisco in longitude as the eastern part of
Maine is east of that city so that it may be
said in truth that the sun never sets on the
United States,' as the English boast of their
empire and kingdom. The Aleutian Islands
are a series of stepping-stones across the
North Pacific ocean. The last one of which
is but $50 miles from Kamtskatka. The CAL
ifornia Indians looked northward for their
ancestors. The American traveller, Ledyard,
declared that in Siberia and North America
he had found but one language. Prof. Win
chell traces the inhabitants Of Siberia and
golia-namely, the EsQuimau and their
arctic congeners-down the Pacific coast and
then across into Mexico and Central America,
and thence up the Mississippi valley where
they were known as the Mound builders.
Furthermore, these races people the Arctic
CIRCLE and far down into British America to
the present day, down as far as our great
lakes. 1t is probable that they stopped at
the great lakes, after meeting the Mound
builders who came north, peopled the lake
region and worked the copper mines of that
region.
OTHER HYPorHEsEs AND TRADITIONS.
We have now instanced nearly all the theories re-
yarong primitive man on this continent living prior
% the Mound Builders, II not identical with them
no the Mound Builders were, and what their
origin was, has been the study Of antquarians for
over century, and Is almost as far from solution
now as then a. will be noted from the above con-
ticting theories. One writer rashly claims that
America was peopled early the Seige Of Troy;
another insists that in the time OF Alexander the Great
MS shps were on our shores; third argues that
tne Roman ships that carried Casars army to Gaul
were OF such huge dimensions that the soldiers
we're compelled to leap into the water to reach the
land, having no small boats, and hence such ships
might cross the ocean and land the Romans on our
continent. We all have heard ofthe "Lost tribes OF
lsraeI' peopling America; of the Welsh ships that
visited our shores and never came back, the Welsh
fr1nce Madoc becoming the head of powerful In
dian nation later on; ofthe Morse discoveries and
me landing Of tine Danish seadogs on our shores
but all these Idle subterfuges In the face Of the
Iact: Of science, and the evidences Of mans origin
and hahitation. gs ~sS NNk'
=, Let US sum up in the words Of an undoubted au.
body Museum, Cambridge, Mass, who says in re- |
cent lecture "This occupation OF the Ohio Valley
,omtemporaneously with the Atlantic coast is set
ed faci, the migrations Of the different peoples be-
ng well established Finally there came upon the |
scene class like the New England Indians and /
coming from the Northwest was people, originally
rom Asia, who followed the Mississippi, the great
axes, the St. Lawrence and the Atlantic coast. The
contact in the Ohio Valley with a short-headed
ace, coming from the South and there are many
ortincations and other evidences in the region Of
ong series Of contests" This theory is not entire
y in accordance with Prof. Winchels or Prof. LIE.
and's theories nor yet that Of Donnelly, Kateman
md others that the Mound Builders came from At
antis. .H.h
It IL highly probable that the short headed Mound
Builders are Of Asatic origin, but whether they
anne direct from Behrng Strait to the Mississippi
Valley, and down into their fsvorite Ohio Valley, or
whether they migrated down the Pacific coast,
hence across the Pueblo region and into the Aztec
country and then up into the Mississippi Valley, il
Tot yet detcrmn ed. On the other hand IL 1t Is true
hat the Mound Builders came from Atlantis, as
me Of its first colonies, still We can not deny
hat their predecessors in the eoantry may have
ome from Asia, and doubtless did, as above de-
cribed. 1t issvident that the Alssksns aud Esqui-
nau were congcners il they not the progenitors
4 the Mound Builders, and all belonged 10 the great
ruranian or yellow -skined race of Asiatic origin.
Our own opinion, In brief, is incIinng to the be-
iefthst the preglacia and glacial Inhabitants
we're TurAnians from the Artictic orsAsiatic polar
egions aod that the Mound Builders drove them |
,ut or absorbed them, in turn to be driven out by |
he red men,
sfHES 49, 49, -. A.ax.m. ~ |